In addition to certain guarantees provided by law, LegalZoom guarantees your satisfaction with our services and support. Because our company was created by experienced attorneys, we strive to be the best legal document service on the web. If you are not satisfied with our services, please contact us immediately and we will correct the situation, provide a refund or offer credit that can be used for future LegalZoom orders.

LegalZoom Satisfaction Guarantee Details:

If you're not satisfied, simply call us toll-free at (800) 773-0888 during our normal business hours. All requests made under this guarantee must be made within 60 days of purchase. We will process your request within 5 business days after we've received all of the documents and materials sent to you. Unfortunately, we can't refund or credit any money paid to government entities, such as filing fees or taxes, or to other third parties with a role in processing your order. We also cannot refund any money paid by you directly to third parties, such as payments made by you directly to attorneys affiliated with our legal plans or attorney-assisted products.

If you want to exchange the product you ordered for a different one, you must request this exchange and complete your replacement order within 60 days of purchase. The purchase price of the original item, less any money paid to government entities, such as filing fees or taxes, or to other third parties with a role in processing your order, will be credited to your LegalZoom account. Any payments made directly by you to attorneys affiliated with our legal plans or attorney-assisted products are not eligible for exchange or credit. Any price difference between the original order and the replacement order or, if a replacement order is not completed within 60 days of purchase, the full original purchase price (in each case less any money paid to government entities or other third parties) will be credited to the original form of payment. If you paid for your original order by check, LegalZoom will mail a check for the applicable amount to your billing address.

Please note that we cannot guarantee the results or outcome of your particular procedure. For instance, the government may reject a trademark application for legal reasons beyond the scope of LegalZoom's service. In some cases, a government backlog can lead to long delays before your process is complete. Similarly, LegalZoom does not guarantee the results or outcomes of the services rendered by our legal plan attorneys or attorney-assisted products. Problems like these are beyond our control and are not covered by this guarantee.

Since we're dedicating time and effort to your legal document preparation, our guarantee only covers satisfaction issues caused by LegalZoom - not changes to your situation or your state of mind.

No One's Whistling "Dixie" at the Prom

No One's Whistling "Dixie" at the Prom

When Kentucky teenager, Jacqueline Duty, tried to attend her senior prom in a homemade dress, school officials stopped her at the door. The reason? Her prom dress featured an enormous sequined, confederate flag. In response, Jacqueline took her school district to court claiming that her right to free speech was violated. Based on her case and ones like it, will the south rise or fall?

Dixie Dress Case

School principal Sean Howard was ready for the confederate dress debut. In fact, school officials had been tipped off earlier by a teacher who overheard Duty speaking to other students about her dress. Howard responded by requesting that Duty not wear the dress on the eve of prom.

When Duty ignored the warning and arrived at her prom decked out the controversial get-up, she was met by the principal and two officers at her car. She never was let inside. Instead, she danced on the sidewalk in front of her school in protest.

At a press conference, Duty argued that she wanted to show her pride in her southern heritage. She had worked on the dress for four years; and, done so despite the fact that she knew that others might find it offensive. In fact, she claimed to be surprised by the school's hard stance on the dress arguing that the school had previously been tolerant of confederate flag clothing.

Confederate Heritage

Until the Sons of the Confederate Veterans and others agreed to pay legal expenses, Duty had to wait to file her lawsuit. Now, Duty has the Southern Legal Resource Center (SLRC) behind her. A non profit law firm, the SLRC advocates for confederate heritage. And, the SLCR is not new to school dress code violation cases. This same team of attorneys represented Timothy Castorina after he was suspended for wearing a T-shirt that had the phrase "Southern Thunder" printed on it. Although the trial judge decided that t-shirts were not a form of free speech, a court of appeals ultimately overturned the decision and ordered a new trial. Eventually, both the school district and Castorina settled out of court. However, the district went on to establish guidelines for offensive clothing and Castorina decided on home schooling.

The SLRC has said that Duty's school violated her right of free speech; in other words, her right to freely express and celebrate her heritage. As a result, she is suing the school district to the tune of $50,000 dollars. She is further claiming defamation, false imprisonment and assault as she claims the principal not only intimidated her by physically striking the car while she was in it but also by trapping her in the area.

The consequences for Duty have been monumental. Duty's lawyers claim she lost scholarships because the incident portrayed her as racist. The former flag-wearer now attends college at ShawneeState in Ohio.

Courts' View

We are all too familiar with the fact that freedom of speech is protected under the First Amendment. However, the rights provided to all citizens under these amendments can be restricted in a school environment. In other words, the rights of public school students are and can be limited while at school. So, while certain clothing has been historically viewed as a form of symbolic or non-verbal speech, it is not absolutely protected in a public school environment.

The question becomes: what clothing has garnered protection? Black armbands meant as silent protest against a war were considered symbolic speech. However, sagging pants were not sufficient representations of black culture and identity to be considered symbolic speech. Where does Duty's dress lie on this sliding scale?

Conclusion

The fashion police reviewing the Kentucky confederate dress have tough criteria. Does the flag dress deserve political or cultural heritage protection under the First Amendment? Was the dress prohibited because it would create disruption? Or because it would infringe on other students' rights? Most importantly, will the courts decide before next prom season?

Get legal help with matters related to work and residencyGET LEGAL HELP

If you’re the head of a new LLC, you’ve got a lot to do – including choosing a title for yourself. You aren’t required to use any particular title, but you do need to make sure that the title you choose is appropriate and doesn’t mislead anyone. Here are some guidelines.

Disclaimer: Communications between you and LegalZoom are protected by our
Privacy Policy but not by the attorney-client privilege or as work product. LegalZoom provides
access to independent attorneys and self-help services at your specific direction. We are not
a law firm or a substitute for an attorney or law firm. We cannot provide any kind of advice,
explanation, opinion, or recommendation about possible legal rights, remedies, defenses, options,
selection of forms or strategies. Your access to the website is subject to our
Terms of Use.